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Rock County, Wisconsin Genealogy

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Guide to Rock County, Wisconsin ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

County Facts
County seat: Janesville
Organized: 1842
Parent County(s): Milwaukee [1]
Neighboring Counties
Boone (IL) • Dane • Green • Jefferson • Walworth • Winnebago (IL)
See County Maps
Courthouse
Rock County Courthouse, Wisconsin.JPG
Location Map
WI Rock.png

County Information

Description

The county was named for the Rock River, which bisects the county from north to south. The name of the county is pronounced with the emphasis or accent on the first syllable, just as is the case with its namesake. The county is located in the south-central area of the state.[2]

County Courthouse

Rock County Courthouse
51 S Main Street
Janesville, WI 53545-3978
Phone: 608-757-5660
Rock County Website

Register of Deeds has birth, marriage and death records from 1849, and land records from 1839.
Registrar in Probate has probate records. [3]

Rock County, Wisconsin Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Government County Records[4]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1846 1849 1849 1840 1839 1850 1820
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1907. General compliance year unknown.

Record Loss

First Courthouse was built in 1841 and was destroyed by fire in 1859.

For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see:

Boundary Changes

Populated Places

For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, see Wikipedia Entries and alternative HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:[7]


Cities
Towns
Villages
Unincorporated communities
Census-designated places
Ghost towns


History Timeline

Resources

Bible Records

Biographies

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Rock County, Wisconsin online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See Wisconsin Cemeteries for more information

Census Records

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1840 1,701 —
1850 20,750 1119.9%
1860 36,690 76.8%
1870 39,030 6.4%
1880 38,823 −0.5%
1890 43,220 11.3%
1900 51,203 18.5%
1910 55,538 8.5%
1920 66,150 19.1%
1930 74,206 12.2%
1940 80,173 8.0%
1950 92,778 15.7%
1960 113,913 22.8%
1970 131,970 15.9%
1980 139,420 5.6%
1990 139,510 0.1%
2000 152,307 9.2%
2010 160,331 5.3%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

For tips on accessing Rock census records online, see: Wisconsin Census.

Church Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about Wisconsin denominations, view the Wisconsin Church Records wiki page.

Lutheran

  • Records of the American Lutheran Church, Beloit, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).


List of Churches and Church Parishes

Court Records

Directories

City and county directories from 1858 to 1931 can be found at

Emigration and Immigration

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

Funeral Homes

Genealogies

Guardianship

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See Wisconsin Land and Property for additional information about early Wisconsin land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

Local Histories

Maps and Gazetteers

Dane CountyJefferson CountyWalworth CountyGreen CountyBoone CountyWinnebago CountyStephenson CountyWI ROCK.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Migration

Military Records

Civil War

Regiments. Service men in Rock served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Rock:

- 2nd Regiment, Wisconsin Cavalry, Companies K, L, and M
- 3rd Regiment, Wisconsin Cavalry, Companies C, E, H, and L
- 5th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, Company E
- 5th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry Reorganized, Company B
- 6th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, Company G
- 8th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, Company G
- 13th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, Companies A, B, D, E, F, G, H and K
- 15th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, Company G

Naturalization and Citizenship

Newspapers

Obituaries

Other Records

Periodicals

Probate Records

Probate records are held by the Rock Clerk of Circuit Court and are housed at the Rock Courthouse. See the wiki page Wisconsin Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.

Content: Probate records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, and adoptions.

Online Records

School Records

Social Security Records

Tax Records

Wisconsin tax records complement land records and can be used to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned property or other items that could be taxed were listed, some residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records. For more information see the Wiki page, Wisconsin Taxation.

Vital Records

Birth

Marriage

Death

Divorce

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Rock County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Wisconsin Archives and Libraries.

  • Special Collections, Area Research Center, University Archives
    Anderson Library, University of Wisconsin, Whitewater
    800 West Main Street
    P.O. Box 900
    Whitewater, WI 53190-0900
    Telephone: 262-472-5520
    Email: archives@uww.edu
    Website
  • Rock County Genealogical Society Library & Archive
    Milton House Reading Room & Research Center
    18 S. Janesville Street
    Milton, WI 53563
    Hours: Wed. & Thurs.: 10 am - 4 pm
    Fri.: 10 am - 3 pm
    Phone: 608-868-7772
    Mailing Address: PO Box 0936, Janesville, Wisconsin 53547-0936
    Email: RCGS.Library@gmail.com
    Website

FamilySearch Centers

FamilySearch Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local FamilySearch Centers or Affiliate Libraries

  • FamilySearch Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
  • FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a FamilySearch center.

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Rock County. For state-wide library facilities, see Wisconsin Archives and Libraries.

Museums

Societies

Listed below are societies in Rock County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Wisconsin Societies.

Websites

Research Guides

References

  1. ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
  2. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Rock County, Wisconsin," in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_County,_Wisconsin. accessed 07/29/2019
  3. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Wisconsin.At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
  4. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Rock County, Wisconsin. Page 755-760, At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 757-759.
  5. ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
  6. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Wisconsin.At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
  7. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Rock County, Wisconsin," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_County,_Wisconsin#Communities, accessed 31 Dec 2018.
v • d• e
Links to Wisconsin-related articles
Topics
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Major
 Repositories
National Archives at Chicago · Wisconsin Historical Society · Wisconsin State Genealogical Society · Wisconsin State Old Cemetery Society · Area Research Centers: 1. Wisconsin Historical Society, 2. University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 3. University of Wisconsin-Platteville, 4. University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, 5. University of Wisconsin-Parkside, 6. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 7. University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 8. University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, 9. University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, 10. University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 11. University of Wisconsin-Stout, 12. University of Wisconsin-River Falls, 13. Superior Public Library, 14. Northern Great Lake Center · Beloit Public Library · Brown County Library · Kenosha Public Library · Milwaukee County Historical Society · Milwaukee Public Library · Norwegian American Genealogical Center and Naeseth Library · Oshkosh Public Library · Racine Heritage Museum Research Center · University of Wisconsin-Madison Memorial Library · Allen County Public Library · Newberry Library
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